Chance of Summit This Year Dim, Soviet Aide Says
The head of the official Soviet news agency Novosti said today the chances for a superpower summit this year are dim unless the United States changes its position on East-West relations and arms control.
Valentin Falin, a former ambassador to West Germany, told reporters he is skeptical of chances for a meeting any time this year between President Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev.
“The Americans are not seeking common ground,” Falin said. “They are seeking the things that drive the two sides apart.”
Falin cited in particular SALT II, the arms agreement Reagan has threatened to abandon this year. He questioned whether his country could satisfy the U.S. condition for sticking to the agreement--namely, that the Soviet Union stop committing treaty violations that Moscow insists are not occurring.
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